Ottumwa, IA—The Marshalltown Community College men's basketball team finished play at the PCS Classic, hosted by Indian Hills Community College, 2-0 after dropping Dodge City Community College 82-69 at the Hellyer Center. Mike Rodriguez (Boston, MA/Redemption Christian Academy) finished with 26 points, 11 assists, and eight rebounds in the win.
The Tigers defeated Carl Sandburg College 85-73 on Friday night and are now 3-1 in Ottumwa this year. MCC improves to 10-3 on the year while Dodge City drops to 8-4.
After falling behind 7-0 to open the night, the Tigers went on a 15-0 run of their own to take control. Rodriguez used a series of fastbreak drives along with three-point plays to score 14 points in the opening frame. The Tigers scored 24 points in the paint in the opening half and scored 12 points off of 10 Conquistador turnovers. MCC went into halftime leading 38-25 after eight players reached the scoring column in the first 20 minutes.
The Tigers continued to hold its double-digit lead to open the second half. Dodge City brought the game to 11, but Paulius Sakinis (Nebraska City, NE/Lourdes Central Catholic) hit a hook shot in the lane and Rodriguez sank a runner to slow the Conquistadors. The Tigers have now scored at least 80 points in all but one game this year and are averaging 88.5 points per contest.
Terence Shelby Jr. (Peoira, IL/Limestone) knocked down four three-point shots, the sixth time he's reached that mark this season, to finish with 18 points. Merdic Green (Levittown, PA/Harry S. Truman) scored 10 points on 5-9 shooting.
The 11 assists for Rodriguez match a career-high while the double-double is the second of the season for the sophomore.
The Tigers will pair up with the women's team for a nonconference double-header on Dec. 10 against Southwestern Community College. The women will tip at 5:00 PM while the men are set for 7:00 PM.
